Frisco Bay downs Ohoka Connor at Auckland earlier in the month. PHOTO: Megan Liefting/Race Images.
It’s bon voyage Frisky as Ray celebrates another rags to riches sale success
By Barry Lichter • 29 March 2025
It’s another profitable result for Ray Green and Lincoln Farms and another loss for the local horse pool with the sale to the United States of speedy pacer Frisco Bay.
The Downbytheseaside four-year-old will leave the country the winner of five races and $84,491, his latest effort a fine second behind Jolimont when rank outsider in the Lincoln Farms Founders Cup.
“It’s not bad result for a $9000 buy,” says Green. “He’s a lovely horse but the way our system treats horses he would have started to cost us money.
“We’re so short of horses here, after you win three or four races you’re thrown in the deep end, with the sharks.”
Green bought Frisco Bay as a weanling, taking in Lincoln Farms’ owners John and Lynne Street as partners, and had high hopes he would be the stable’s best two-year-old.
But while it took the horse more time to realise his potential, he really came to it in the last 12 months, culminating in his latest pounce-form-the-trail 1700 metre win over Ohoka Connor, Wicked Wanda and Duchess Megxit at Auckland.
“Their style of racing over there will suit him - they jump and run and their first half is always the quickest,” Green said.
“He also has good gate speed if they need it. He should be quite competitive.”
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Ray’s comments
Friday night at Cambridge
Race 1: Spirited Belle
4.46pm
Delany: “I saw she’d been punted but somebody must know something we don’t as I’ve been working her myself and, while she feels all right and hasn’t put the boot in like at Auckland, I think she’ll need the run. She hasn’t got any high speed but feels like she will stay. She has improved a bit but I’d be surprised if she won.”
Race 1: Lincoln Maree
4.46pm
“It’s always hard from these draws but she’s a tough mare who will make her own luck at some stage. She’s going well enough - her drivers have all been happy - and she’s a little warrior who tries like hell.”
Race 2: Major Copy
5.12pm
“He’s only two and very inexperienced but he feels like a good colt and there’s a lot of improvement in him. He certainly caught a lot of people’s attention last time. I don’t know how good he is yet but he’ll be right there.”
Race 2: Prince Lincoln
5.12pm
“If he can lead without having to do too much work I can’t see anything beating him. I thought he went great last start. He pressed the winner hard ’til the corner then just flattened out in the run home, but he had every reason to do that after all the work he’d done.”
Race 4: Spirit Of God
6.12pm
“She’s been undone by bad draws. If she led easily from three she’d be hard to beat as she’s a good front-runner.”
Race 4: Spirited Peggy
6.12pm
“We’ve had her for only two weeks but she’s seven now and has had her chance to win one. She has a bit of speed but I think she gets pulling so we’ve got the Hidez (compression) hood on her and plugged her ears up.”
Race 6: Copy N Paste
7.10pm
“We won’t see the best of him for another six months. He’s been a slow developing horse but is improving all the time and getting stronger.”
Race 6: Jessie Lincoln
7.10pm
“If I was having a bet on one of them in the race it would be her. She deserves to win one. Her last two have been really good - she just ran into one who was a bit slicker last time in Major Copy.”
Race 6: Lincoln Dealer
7.10pm
“He’s a bit one-dimensional - you’ve got to feed him track and let him run - so the second row draw is a big handicap. To his credit I was surprised he finished so close last time after all the work he did. When he gets a decent draw and crosses them they’ll know they’re at the races. He’s got a big motor and tries hard.”
Race 8: Rivergirl Bella
8.08pm
“She clawed her way to the front last time but had nothing left at the finish. That won’t happen this time and she should lead easily from one.”
Race 8: Angelic Copy
8.08pm
“She’s had terrible draws but has been going good races. The others last time were just better than her but this is a big drop in class. With the right trip she could get some of it at huge odds.”
Race 9: Sugar Ray Lincoln
8.35pm
“He’s not quick away from a stand but he won’t muff it completely. He steps from the front line and Peter Ferguson was quite happy with his last run.”
Race 9: Lincoln Wave
8.35pm
“He bombed the stand the first time but to be fair all those horses were rushing up at him from the back and that panicked him a bit. He’s on 10 metres this time so that won’t happen.”
